Orioles Manager Shares Bleak 5-Word Jackson Holliday Injury Update

Baltimore Orioles fans entered the 2026 season with a lot of hope that this would finally be the year that Jackson Holliday breaks out into stardom.

Baltimore selected Holliday (who is the son of MLB legend Matt Holliday) with the No. 1 overall pick of the 2022 MLB Draft. Holliday then skyrocketed through the Orioles' farm system and made his MLB debut in April of 2024. Given that Holliday faced very little adversity in the minor leagues, many were expecting him to quickly become one of baseball's best offensive infielders.

That didn't happen. Holliday struggled at the plate, hitting .189 with a .566 OPS in 60 games during his rookie campaign. While Holliday showed improvement during the 2025 season, his .242 average and .689 OPS in 146 games were still a far cry from what he'd done his entire career to this point and a long way away from what Orioles fans were hoping for.

Baltimore Orioles second baseman Jackson Holliday (7) | Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

However, Holliday is far from the first talented top prospect to struggle during his adjustment to the major leagues. And the good news is that he's still just 22 years old, now has a whole season of MLB service under his belt, and is set up for success in Baltimore.

That is, before Holliday suffered a broken hamate bone in his left hand during the 2026 spring training, which required surgery.

Craig Albernaz Gets Honest About Jackson Holliday Injury

Hamate bone injuries can be tricky to recover from. Because every player seems to heal from it differently, there's typically no set timeline for a player to get back on the field after suffering the break.

Orioles manager Craig Albernaz was asked about whether Holliday might heal quickly enough to play in a Grapefruit League game when speaking with the media on March 2.

“We’re not banking on it,” Albernaz responded, per an article from Roch Kubatko of MASN.

Orioles second baseman Jackson Holliday was doing work on the backfields today in Sarasota, Florida, while recovering from hand surgery. First-year manager Craig Albernaz said Holliday is progressing well, but he's not counting on the infielder's participation in any Grapefruit… pic.twitter.com/W9n4NupGMr
— The Baltimore Sun (@baltimoresun) March 3, 2026

An X post from The Baltimore Sun also added Albernaz saying, "[Holliday is] progressing great. The big thing with him is he's not trying to do too much; he's doing exactly what he should be doing. And most importantly, he's out there around during practice and during the games with the boys. So his progression has been awesome so far."

It would be smart for Baltimore to not rush Holliday back to that he's 100% healthy when he does eventually return to action.

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